9781631054631ChoiceAffairsSalisbury (13 page)

“Mother, I thought you
were happy for Apolo and me. Instead, you’re sneaking behind our backs, selling
stories, getting cozy with people you know dislike Apolo. Why? What’s in it for
you? Are you that much in need of attention tha
t
you’ll stoop to whatever level just to get it?
And what about Pop?
You treat him like dirt.”

“I
am
happy for you, Caitlyn. I just don’t
like being treated like I’m some contagious disease.” She started toward the
door in a huff, sniffling like she had at
our
wedding. The woman had no shame.

Caitlyn began to go
after her, but I took her elbow, shaking my head. We’d just be playing into her
game if Caitlyn tried to console her. No, it was best to end it now.

“I’ll text you my
address and my new phone number
tomorrow,” Susan
sniveled as she entered the elevator. “Apolo, Caitlyn. Have a good evening.”

She was gone. I could
see Caitlyn blow out a breath. Out of relief, I’m sure. I knew I was feeling
the same.

“That woman’s a piece
of work, Apolo. But it’s not g
oing to end with her,
is it?”

“I’m afraid not, love.
She’s crawled into bed with some very unsavory folk. I’ll keep an eye on her.”

“I know you will,” she
replied, grabbing my ass. “I suggest we eat then move on to what we were doing
earlier.”

“Oh, I will,
and I’ll be keeping an eye on her newfound friends as
well. As to what we were doing earlier? Yes, but I think we must start over.
Once we’ve eaten.”

Chapter
Eight

I gathered the plates
and Mother’s wine glass from the living room and took them to the kitchen,
where Apolo was going through the cartons of food she had brought with her.
“Anything good?”

“Hmmmm,
yes.
But I’d rather have those steaks and whatever else yo
u
picked up.”

“So would I, but we
can’t let all this go to waste.”

“I have an idea,” he
replied, walking out of the kitchen. I followed him to the intercom located
near the elevator. “Danny, this is Apolo Choice. By chance, have any of you
eaten dinner thi
s evening?”

“No,
sir, Senator Choice.
We were just now going to begin our dinner breaks. Why? Do
you need something?”

“No, I don’t need a
thing. I do have a shit load of Italian food, more than Mrs. Choice and I can
possibly eat. I thought perhaps I’d shar
e.”

“That’s very generous,
Senator Choice.”

“Good! Then, it’s
settled. I’ll bring it down to the desk momentarily. See you in a few minutes.”

“Thank you, senator.”

Apolo turned to me, a
sly grin on his face. “You see?”

“Clever,
Apolo.
But it does keep all
that food from going to waste.”

“
Come,
help me put it back into the bags. See if we have any
disposable plates we can send. I saw forks and knives already, so we’re good
there.”

We walked back into
the kitchen and quickly had everything back in the two bag
s. Finding a package of disposable plates, I added a stack.

“Would you like me to
come with you?”

“If
you wish.
Though, I’d rather you stay here and start our supper. I’m starving, Caiti.”

I chuckled. I knew his
ploy. He wanted to take all this downstairs
and,
while there, casually mention the fact that my mother, under no circumstances,
was to be given access to the building. “Okay, I can manage that. Don’t be too
long, though, okay?”

“I won’t, I promise.”
He enveloped me in his arms and kissed me softly.
“Besides,
after dinner, I believe we have some fun activities to get back to.”

“You have a one track
mind sometimes, Apolo. But I love you for it.”

“I know you do,” he
quipped as he quickly picked up the two sacks.

I shook my head and
opened the Sub-Zero.
I began pulling out everything
I’d purchased earlier in the afternoon. I found a bottle of marinade Apolo
liked to use from time to time and added it to the plastic bag that held the
steaks. While they were getting ready, I prepared a salad. Something told
me I had plenty of time. I set the table, and went back
into the kitchen to wait. Everything was ready, or near ready, and the steaks
would go on as soon as my husband came back.

A short time later
while we were enjoying our meal, I thought to bring up ou
r most recent visitor. “I’m going to call Pop in the
morning. See what his take on all of this is.
If he has one.
He might not know about any of this,
and I certainly don’t know what has transpired between him and my mother.”

“I agree. At least
call him, l
et him know we’re settling in. Then, bring
up your mother. See if he’s willing to share. I’m not sure he will, however. He
hits me as an extremely private man.”

“He is.
Proud, too.
I think that’s where
him
being private comes from. As much as I hate to say
it, I think he would be so much happier divorced from my
mother. She obviously cares nothing for him unless it benefits her.” I couldn’t
believe I actually, finally, had come out and said that. I knew Apolo agreed—it
was just strange hearing myself admit
my parents
would be better off apart than together.

“Well, my only advice
to you is this. Don’t share what we know about your mother with him. If he is
unaware of her activities, there’s no reason we should.”

“And if he does?”

“Go slow. Let him do
the talk
ing, if he wants to.”

I sat, toying with a
piece of steak on my plate. “What the hell is wrong with my family? My brother
is up to no good, and my mother is getting herself into a bad situation. I know
every family has their dynamics, but hell, this is too
much.”

He reached over and
touched my forearm, laying his hand there for a moment. “Try not to let it
consume you, okay? I know that’s easier said than done. I have everything being
looked into.”

“I know you do,” I
replied, popping the last remaining piec
e of our
fabulous meal into my mouth. “And while we’re on the subject, what is the
connection with my mother, Delpheine, and this senator? It’s too weird.
Of all people for my mother to be cozying
up to.”

“That’s another thing
we’re looking at. I don’t hav
e the answers right now,
sweet.”

“I know you don’t. I
suppose I’m trying to figure things out. Talking about it helps me.”

“Then talk. You know
I’m always here to listen.”

I leaned back in my
chair and smiled at him. This man would move heaven and earth fo
r me, if I asked. “So, what plans have you got for us,
senator?”

“Absolutely
none.
No, that’s not true. At some point I’d like for us to go over our schedules
together. See what each of us has going on next week.”

“Good idea, and I’m
also sure you’re going
to want to spend some time
catching up on whatever is going on down in Atlanta. Am I right?”

“Yes, you are. I
promise not to spend too much time. I just need to follow up on some projects.”

“Good. Oh, and by the
way, did you notice how strange my mother w
as talking
at times?”

“Your mother always
talks strange, Caitlyn.” He winked and tried to duck as I playfully threw my
napkin at him.

* * * *

The weekend went by
quietly. I was too glad, because I knew this wouldn’t be the case all the time.
Apolo and I
had gone over our individual schedules
for the upcoming week.
Something
that would become routine in our everyday lives.
I would put his into mine and vice
versa. That way if we weren’t able to phone the other, we could at least look
and get an idea of whe
re the other one was.

Apolo tried to talk me
into hiring an assistant, but I put my foot down.
At least for now.
My schedule was manageable. I could
handle it by myself. The appointments I had were minimal. I assured him that
when it got to the point where
I was feeling
overwhelmed, I’d reconsider.

I was especially
excited Monday.
My first
appointment with a couple of the heads of a group for the disabled.
One Apolo had always quietly donated
money to. Now, perhaps, I could help him, and them, get the word
out. We were to meet at a restaurant for lunch, making it a
little more relaxing and informal.

Bo drove me to my
destination. Jacob was obviously busy with other matters.
Poor man.
Apolo kept him running.

We pulled up in front
of the restaurant, and I went
inside. I was greeted
by Amy Knight, a petite brunette with enough enthusiasm for ten people.

“Mrs. Choice. Thank
you for coming,” she said, shaking my hand. She had on a grey business suit
that was stunning. It seemed to compliment her immensely. “If you
’ll follow me, Stacy is waiting at our table.”

“Thank you,” I
replied. Amy was probably not but a few years older than I was, I mused.

We approached a table
off to one side, out of the main line of traffic. A tall blond stood up and
immediately came our wa
y.
Must be Stacy Newton.

“Mrs.
Choice, how nice to see you.
Thank you for coming.”

I nodded and made my
reply, sitting down at one of the empty spots. We were all settling in when I
happened to look across the room and see my mother. She waved. It was her
lunch partner that concerned me.
Delpheine
.

Immediately, my head
began to spin. What were the two of them doing here? How did they know
I
would be here?
Too many questions.
Too many unanswered questions.

The three of us began
the polite, getting-to-know-ea
ch-other conversation.
I tried to ignore my mother and her new found pal, but found it hard to do.
Then, I suddenly realized I’d left my purse in the back seat of the Bentley.

Taking advantage of
the situation, I quietly informed Amy and Stacy what I’d
done and got out of my seat to retrieve my bag. I knew Bo
would be parked right outside, and I made sure I left going nowhere near my
mother’s table.

Finding Bo, who was
standing next to the limo enjoying the nice afternoon weather, I approached
quickly. “
I need you to do me a favor.
Call or text Jacob.
Tell him my mother and Delpheine are
here having lunch. This is not a coincidence, Bo. And no one knew my schedule.”

“Yes,
ma’am.
I’ll do that right now.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket and began text
ing.

While he was doing
that, I retrieved my purse from the backseat. “Thank you, Bo. I shouldn’t be
but an hour more.”

“Not a problem, Mrs.
Choice.”

I returned to my
table, noticing my mother and my husband’s ex-girlfriend deep in conversation.
Ignoring t
hem, I continued on with my meeting.

“We can’t begin to
tell you how excited we were to get your call, Mrs. Choice. Your husband has
been a huge financial supporter for years,” Stacy remarked over her salad. “We
thought perhaps today we could share ideas,
things
like that.”

“This is something
that’s quite close to his heart. For personal reasons, especially,” I replied.
“And, please, call me Caitlyn. I haven’t quite gotten used to the formality of
Mrs. Choice, much less being a senator’s wife. It’s all quit
e daunting.”

“I can imagine,” Amy
said. “Your husband seems like a very intense, determined man. I’ve always
enjoyed our meetings. He’s quite professional, but reachable.
At least in this instance.”

“He is intense, but
you’re right about all the rest.”

“Ca
n you elaborate any on your husband’s injury?” Stacy
inquired.

“The only thing I can
tell you is that he lost his leg in a tragic accident right after
he graduated college. Unless he changes his mind, I’m
afraid that’s all I can share with you. Apolo hates
to put himself in the limelight, especially on this topic.”

We chatted a bit about
what Apolo and I, me in particular, would like to do to help get the word out.
Nothing too flamboyant or over the top.
Not at first.
Just some behind the scenes help and in
volvement.

As we were eating our
lunch, my mother and her new-found friend made sure they stopped by our table.
Mother acted like nothing at all had transpired between us a few days before.